Industry coalition SEA-LNG on Thursday (5 December) said that while the approximately 2,200 LNG-fuelled vessels and LNG carriers represent only ‘two minutes into the hour’ of the global fleet of approximately 60,000 deep sea vessels, it remains an adolescent fuel that is maturing significantly faster than other alternative bunker fuels. 

However, it said the LNG pathway still needs more investment, especially in landside facilities for liquefaction near ports, bio and synthetic methane production and bunkering capacity worldwide.

This year has witnessed unprecedented investment in the maturing and scaling of LNG from ship owners.  LNG is starting to dominate as the preferred future fuel pathway. 

However, the bunker market, while growing substantially, is lagging and concerns persist regarding the ability to supply the rapidly growing fleet of LNG-fuelled vessels.

Peter Keller, Chairman, SEA-LNG, said: “With high profile owners now choosing the LNG pathway, we anticipate this trend will continue and accelerate through 2025 and beyond.”

“As the various alternative fuel pathways mature, there is a growing realisation that, despite previous aspirations, some alternative fuel pathways – like the LNG pathway – are more practical and realistic than others.”

“While investment in newbuild LNG-fuelled ships is robust, we need to see the same for bunker vessels, supply and liquefaction infrastructure. As the LNG pathway continues to mature and the use of liquefied biomethane and eventually e-methane increases, the delivery of the fuel to vessels must be assured and the investment gap closed.”

Keller added: “There are approximately 60,000 deep sea ships on the water and, today, we’re looking at around 600 LNG capable ships afloat with a further 600 on order. There are another 1,000 LNG cargo carriers and bunker vessels of varying sizes.”

“While that’s a small percentage of the global fleet, as the clock ticks towards shipping’s emissions reduction targets, the LNG pathway is maturing far faster than other alternative fuels.”

According to DNV there are currently 54 methanol vessels and 2 ammonia vessels on the water.

There are aspects of LNG usage that are fully mature – safety for one. LNG is easy to transport, poses minimal, if any, risk to marine environments, has a low flammability range and is non-toxic. Effective regulations, standards and guidelines for safe operations are widespread, and LNG has been shipped around the world for almost 60 years without any major incidents at sea or in ports.

Keller continued: “When compared to traditional fuels, LNG is more of a teenager with all the growing pains, challenges and victories associated with adolescence.”

“But it is maturing all the time as the market continues to grow, new build orders continue to rise, and the LNG pathway with biomethane and eventually e-methane produced from renewable hydrogen, gains acceptance globally.”

“Shipping stakeholders are investing in LNG because it provides a low risk, incremental pathway for decarbonisation, starting now.  The other alternative fuels are basically toddlers by comparison.  And when it comes to safety, some are mere newborns!”

Another critical need in the maturing process during a period of increased regulation of carbon emissions is the adoption of standardised chain of custody models on a worldwide basis. 

Chain of custody models are becoming increasingly important to maritime decarbonisation as they provide mechanisms to verify that the fuels used are low carbon. 

Such verification creates investor confidence in new fuel supply chains and accelerates the transition to low-carbon fuels, enabling early adoption in conditions of limited supply. 

“They will create a market for green fuels by connecting buyers to fuel producers away from bunker ports enabling faster scaling and providing flexibility to shipping companies at lower cost,” SEA-LNG added.

Photo credit: SEA-LNG
Published: 6 December, 2024

French shipping giant CMA CGM on Wednesday (4 December) said it successfully completed its 100th simultaneous LNG bunkering and cargo operation (SIMOPS) at the Shanghai Yangshan terminal.

The achievement comes two years after the company signed a LNG bunkering agreement with Shanghai International Port Group in 2022.

“This milestone bunkering of the CMA CGM Patagonia not only marks a significant achievement but also sets a new record for the largest single refueling volume in China: an impressive 11,500 m³ of LNG,” the firm said. 

“This was accomplished while seamlessly conducting simultaneous operations, including cargo handling and maintenance.”

According to Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG), bunkering vessel Hai Gang Wei Lai supplied the LNG bunker fuel to CMA CGM Patagonia.

Manifold Times previously reported CMA CGM and SIPG completing their first LNG bunkering operation at Yangshan Port in March 2022, marking the first ship-to-ship LNG SIMOPS in China.

The development was built upon an earlier 10-year LNG bunkering and joint project agreement formed between both entities in January 2022 where SIPG will provide SIMOPS LNG bunkering service for CMA CGM’s vessels sailing from China to the United-States at Yangshan Port.

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Photo credit: Shanghai International Port Group
Published: 5 December, 2024

Seaspan Energy (Seaspan) on Wednesday (4 December) said it has successfully completed its first LNG ship-to-ship transfer to a containership in the Port of Long Beach. 

The operation marked the beginning of Seaspan’s service offering on the West Coast of North America with two LNG bunkering vessels to soon serve both the Long Beach and Vancouver markets.

“Our first ship-to-ship LNG bunkering has been five years in the making and our team is so proud of this milestone especially as this represents the first ship-to-ship bunkering on the West Coast of North America,” said Harly Penner, Senior Vice President, Seaspan Energy.  

“We are committed to offering large vessel operators a low-carbon fuel solution and this is the first of many successful operations to support a sustainable shift in the global marine sector.”

The first ship-to-ship transfer was performed by the Seaspan Garibaldi, the first of three Seaspan Energy 112m-long LNG bunkering vessels to be operational. The Seaspan Garibaldi will soon be joined by the Seaspan Lions and both bunkering vessels will support the market on the West Coast of North America.  

Seaspan Energy is the first Canadian company to provide ship-to-ship bunkering solutions.

Photo credit: Seaspan Energy
Published: 5 December, 2024